Impulse counting and selecting device



June 11, 1946. A. N. GoLDsMxTH IMPULSE COUNTING AND SELECTING DEVICE Original Filed Dec. 6, 1941 WGMQ QKNOOQ INVENTOR `patienter! June 11, 1946 2,401,729 IMPULSE CDUNTING AND SELECTING DEVIC Alfred N. Goldsmith, New York, N. Y.

Original application Dec Divided and ber 3,1, 1943, Serial No 7 Claims.

This invention relates to impulse counting and selecting systems and more particularly to a device in which cathode ray tubes are'utilized for selecting a particular impulse in'a given train whereby the operation of a utilization device may be suitably timed. This application is a division of my copending application Serial No, 421,898, which was :flied December 6, 1941.

In the parent application, I have described a Mradio centercasting system suitable for gathering information, such as public opinions, from groups of respondents who may be selected memember 6, 1941, Serial No. this application Decem- 516,495

My invention will now be described in more l detail, reference being made to the accompanying bers of the public. Each of these respondents is Y provided `with radio receiving and transmitting equipment so arranged as to communicate with a central station where opinions may be automatically collected, classified, and analyzed,

In a voting system such as I disclosed in the parent application, I showed a preference for collecting votes from various outlying respondent stations in a predetermined sequence., 'Ille method of gathering votes sequentially has two main advantages,I namely, precision of counting the votes and compilation of the voting statistics so that the source of each individual vote is identitled.

Accordingly, it is an object of the invention herein claimed as divisional subject matter to provide impulse counting and selecting apparatus suitable for initiating the operation oi any desii-ed utilization device at a precise moment determined by the arrival of a control impulse which is a particular one in a, train of impulses.

It is another object of my invention to provide impulse counting and selecting apparatus operable i'rom a periodic train of impulses, such apparatus including cathode ray tube means whereby a single impulse in the train is selected for controlling a utilization device and for timing the operation of the latter.

It is still another object of my invention to provide a system of the class described in which a control signal may be sent out from a central station for the purpose of starting and stopping the operation of various respondent transmitters, such starting and stopping being obtained by a time sequence method, whereby the responses produced in the central' station may be capable of accumulation in a predetermined order.

The foregoing and other objects and advantages o my invention may be achieved with the aid of apparatus presently to bedescribed, and by the adoption oi novel methods which are either explicitly set forth, or otherwise implied, in the text ci this specification.

Sii

drawing, the sole gure of which shows a preferred circuit arrangement for selecting a single impulse in a given train as the initiating impulse for control of a utilization device.

Referring to the drawing,` I show a preferred form or apparatus suitable for counting the impulses in a given train and for producing a response when the nth impulse in the train is reached. .The apparatus comprises a plurality of cathode ray tubes arranged to count incoming cyclic impulses and to deliver'a single output impulse when a specified number of incoming impulses has arrived'at a given respondent station. A 50G-cycle Wave derived from a, suitable control source is fed to an amplilier 392 having two output circuits, one of which is utilized in partially controlling the release of electrons by the electron guns in the several cathode ray tubes 3W, 343, and 341i.

Output energy from amplifier 392 is also fed to a frequency divider 398 and thence to an ampliiler 311i. This amplifier has two output circuits, one for producing two-'phase deilecting circuit potentials to be applied to the deecting coils 303 and 305 of the cathode ray tube SIW. The irequency divider 398 preferably has a 10 to i ratio between its input and output frequencies. Thus a 50-cycle wave is fed across transformer 399 which has a secondary in circuit with the vertical deecting coils 395.. At two points in this circuit ground connections are indicated. in order to produce a phase displacement of 90 in the currents which traverse the horizontal coils 363, a phase displacing network consisting of capacitor 3H and impedance 3l3 is employed. As is well-known, such a phase displacing network may be suitably designed to produce quadrature phase displacement between the currents traversing the coils 303 and 305 respectively, and` thus to provide rotary scanning of. the electron beam.

The cathode ray 4tube 307 comprises a cathode 3515, a control electrode'Bil, a focusing anode 359, il target anode 321, and a second target anode 323. Anode 32! is here shown as a broken ring subtending an arc of of a circle, or 324. Anode 323 subtends substantially an arc of 36 or il; oi a circle. The two anodes 32i and 323 are connected by'means of impedances 325 and vrespectively to the positive terminal of a. suitable direct current source. The negative terminal of Vthis source is preferably grounded, and so is the cathode SI5 oi the tube.

Rotary scanning of the electron beam in the 3 cathode ray tube 301 is thus provided by the twophase currents derived from the transformer 333 and the phase displacing network 3H, 3|3. As the beam rotates, it will. for 1% of one revolution. traverse the anode 32 I and fcr 15; of a revolution, it will traverse the anode 323. The arrival time of the beam at the center of the anode 333 is determined by the orientation of this anode with respect to the axes of the deiiecting coils 333 and 333. and is adjusted in accordance with the units digit of the call number for a given sta tion. When anode 333 is impacted by electrons, a negative impulse is impressed across capacitor 333, which blocks the current otherwise normally flowing in discharge tube 33|. This discharge tube the usual electrodes, of which the control grid and cathode are interconnected by a grid leak resistor 333. while the anode is fed with positive potential from any suitable source across an impedance 335. When the discharge tube 33| is blocked, the rise of potential on its anode produces an impulse across capacitor 331 for actuating an amplifier 333, thereby to emit a control signal which is fed to an electronic keyer of the type disclosed in the parent application Serial No. 421,898, or to any other utilization device the operation of which is to be initiated at the instant of receiving a particular pulse in the counting train. The keyer of the parent application conditions a power amplifier momentarily so as to cause a voting station to transmit a voting signal.

During the persistence of the 50G-cycle wave train applied to amplifier 332, the frequency divider 333 continues to function. The 50-cycle output from amplifier 33| also persists and delivers suitable potentials to the deiiecting coils 303 and 335. In order to render the hundreds and tens digits of a station's calling number effective, the emission in tube 301 is restricted to a brief period which comprehends only i cycles of the 50o-cycle wave. Furthermore, the electron stream fiows only during ten positive half-cycles of `this wave. During this time the electron beam will be directed toward nine different portions of the anode 32| and some portion of the anode 323. During 990 of the cycles of the 50G-cycle wave the electron beam will be blocked by a blocking bias derived from source 333. This is true because the blocking bias is so set that it will be overcome only when control impulses are applied to the control electrode 3|1 across capacitors 3|3 and 331 simultaneously. I will now explain the manner of overcoming this blocking bias in order to produce the one effective impulse for selection of the respondent station, which impulse is initiated by a negative charge on the anode 323, for producing a surge impulse across capacitor 323, thereby to block the discharge in tube 33|. The blocking of tube 33| causes a positive impulse to be fed across capacitor 331 to amplifier 333.

A frequency divider 335 is controlled by output current from the amplifier 30|. This divider preferably has a to 1 ratio between input and output frequencies. The output frequency of 5 cycles is amplified by the unit 331 which also has two output circuits. One such output circuit includes the primary of a transformer 333 occupying the same position with relation to cathode ray tube 333 and its detlecting circuits as is obtained by the transformer 333 and the deflecting circuitsof cathode ray tube 331. In other words, transformer 333 feeds current of one phase to the vertical defiecting coils 35| and thence to ground.

The phasr displacing network consisting of capacitor 353 and impedance 355 causes current of quadrature phase to be fed to the horizontal defiecting coils 351 and thence to ground.

Each of the cathode ray tubes 343 and 3 is similar in construction to that of cathode ray tube 331. The electron gun elements need not. therefore, be described in detail. Furthermore, the same construction of anode electrodes exists in the different cathode ray tubes. and these need no further description. In cathode ray tube 343, however, the 324-anode is labelled 333, while the 36-anode segment is labelled 33|. Correspondingly, in cathode ray tube 333, I have labelled the larger anode 333 and the smaller one 335. Vertical deilecting coils for tube 3M are labelled 331 and the horizontal defiecting coils 333.

One of the two output circuits from amplifier 331 feeds a 5-cycle current to a frequency divider 31| which also has a ratio of 10 to 1 between its input and output frequencies, thus delivering a frequency of .5 cycle per second to amplifier 313. This amplifier has an output transformer 315 across which the .5-cycle current is fed to a phase-splitting network 353,4 353, and thence to the vertical and horizontal deiiecting coils 331 and 333.

From the foregoing description of the ampli fiers 332, 33|l 341 and 313 and their interconnections through frequency dividers 333, 335 and 31| it will be seen that the beams in the three cathode ray tubes are rotated at different velocities corresponding to gears having 10 to 1 ratios therebetween. The maximum scanning velocity of 50 revolutions per second is obtained in tube 301; in tube 343 the velocity is 5 revolutions per second; and in tube 344 the velocity is 1/2 revolution per second.

Tube 333 has an output circuit from its anode 36| and through impedance 313 to the positive side of an anode potential sorurce. The anode 353 is connected to the same source through impedance 330. The scanning velocity in tube 333 is such that ten marking impulses of the 500- cycle wave are caused to traverse capacitor 3|3 and to discharge electrons from the gun while the beam is aimed once at the anode 33|. During each scanning revolution marking impulses are suppressed or rendered ineffectual by aiming the beam at the anode 333. When the beam is effective a negative surge across capacitor 33| blocks tube 333, thus delivering ten impulses through resistor 335 and across capacitor 331 for aiding in the release of electrons by control electrode 3|1 in tube 331.

Only one out of ten scanning revolutions of the beam in tube 333 is rendered effective in accordance with the preceding paragraph. The other scannings are suppressed by the biasing source 3|3 during the absence of control impulses to be derived from the action of tubes 3 and 333.

Tube 343 has an output circuit from its anode 335 through impedance 311 to the positive side of an anode potential source. The anode 333 is connected to the same source through impedance 313. impulses derived from the impact of electronic puffs or clouds against anode 355 traverse the capacitor 33| for controlling a discharge tube 333 thereby to repeatedly block the same. The anode potential rises in this tube when it is blocked, due to the presence of a load resistor 385 in its connection to an anode potential source. Positive impulses, 100 in succession at the 500- cycle rate, are impressed across capacitor 3l1 for controlling the electrode 339 in cathode ray tube 343. At these instants simultaneous impulses across capacitor 3|.4 cause the electron stream in tube 343 to be released while it is deflected rotatively just once. During the remainder of the time of transmission of the 50G-cycle wave train preceding and/or following the reception of these 100 marking impulses the beam in cathode ray tube 344 is directed ineffectually against the anode 333, so that the emission in tube 343 becomes blocked.

The fundamentals of my counting system as set forth in the paragraphs immediately preceding may be extended, if desired, to a system wherein additional cathode ray tubes would be employed to permit counting up to a .number having four or more digits. Alternatively, the arc subtended by the selecting anode segments 323, 36| and 365 might be reduced in degrees, and at the same time the ratio between input and output frequencies of the frequency dividers 398,v

34E, and 31| would be of a higher order so that the scanning velocities in the several cathode ray tubes would bear higher ratios one to another. Thus a higher order of selectivity would be obtainable without the use of additional apparatus components.

I previously mentioned that in order to select each respondent station for operation in a pre' determined sequence, it is arranged for the cathode ray tubes 344, 343, and 301 to be rotatively 6 marking impulse and the blocking of the two tubes 333 and 393. This moment is, therefore,

determined by the respective orientations of the anodes 365, 36| and 323.

To those skilled in the art, various modifications of my invention will suggest themselves. in view of the foregoing description of the embodiment which I prefer.

I claim:

1. Apparatus settable to produce a response only upon reception of a predetermined one o1' a plurality of periodically transmitted marking signals, said apparatus comprising a, series of cathode ray tubes each having an electron gun the 'emission from which is controlled at least in part by said marking signals, and each having rotary beam defiecting means, and a plurality of target anodes, active and passive, means for apadjusted on their respective axes thereby to place their effective anode segments 365, 38| and 323 in suitable angular relation to the vertical and horizontal axes ofl the deecting coils which are associated with these tubes. The mere act of rotating the cathode ray tubes in this manner enables me to adjust each electronic counter at a given respondent station so that it will be caused to deliver a single control signal across the capacitor 331 and thence through amplifier 339 to the electronic keyer at an instant corresponding to its orderly position in the entire series of respondent stations. When the 500- cycle frequency is initiated by the central station a suliicient number of marking impulses in the train is caused to be transmitted so that each of the respondent stations will pick up itsparticular individual controlling impulse in the entire train, and the different respondent stations will send out their voting signals successively and in a predetermined order,

The equivalent of counting gears may be readily understood as provided by the association of the three cathode ray tubes 344, 343 and 301', in accordance with the foregoing description. in order to illustrate more specifically how an individual respondentv station is to be selected at a particular instant when its count of halfcycles is reached in the train of 50G-cycle waves, the operation of the circuit arrangement shown will now be recapitulated.

The 50G-cycle input wave is limited to 999 marking impulses which are applied to amplifier 392 and ,utilized across transformer 394 for opposing the cut-olf biases of sources 396, 3|8 and 324 so that control electrodes 3H, 389 and 390 will stand only slightly below the cut-ofi threshold in the `presence of these marking impulses. Scanning of the electron beams in tubes 363i, 343 and 344 take place to the number of lilo revolutions, l0 revolutions and one revolution respectively. Selection of the time when, or the single impulse by which, the electronic keyer is actuated depends upon the coincidence of a plying quadrature-phased potentials to the detlecting means of each tube means for maintaining fixed multiple ratios between the scanning velocities in the several tubes, circuit means intercoupling an active target anode in one said tube and a control electrode in another said tube for at .times aiding said marking signals in their control of the emission, means for setting each of said active target anodes in a predetermined angular relation to axes on which said quad- Y rature phased potentials are applied, and a utilization device coupled to an active target anode in the tube -whose beam rotates at the highest velocity, said utilization device being arranged to manifest said response only when the active target anodes in all said tubes are simultaneously impacted by the several electron beams.

2. An electronic counter comprising a. plurality of cathode ray tubes, an electron gun, target anodes and rotative beam deflecting means in each tube, means including sources olE polyphase potentials for actuating the beam deilecting means, at scanning velocities individual to each tube, an input circuit for each tube, said input circuit carrying a wave train the nth cycle of which is to be detected, the frequency of said wave train being harmonically related te each of said polyphase potentials, separate means responsive to the impact of electrons upon a particular target anode in each tube for designating a predetermined phase of each beam scanning cycle, and means responsive to the simultaneous occurrence of phase designations in all of the tubes i'or manifesting said nth cycle of the Wave train.

3. An electronic counter according tov claim 2 in which said polyphase potentials are decimally related to each other and to the frequency of said wave train.

4. An'electronic counter according to claim 2 and including frequency dividers for deriving said polyphase potentials from said wave train, and phase Shifters for maintaining a quadrature phase relation between two components of said potentials as applied in the deecting means in dividual to each tube. Y

5. Apparatus ior selecting a single cycle in a given wave train lor control of a responsive device, said apparatus comprising a plurality of cathode ray tubes each having electrodes for pi' ducing an electron beam and target anodes toward which the beam is aimed, deflecting means associated with each tube for causing the beam therein to scan rotatively the target anodes of that tube, means including a wave energy source and frequency dividers acting upon the deiiecting means of each tube to produce cyclic deflection ot the beam at different rates, each rate being one to which the frequency of the given wave train is harmonically related, means for orienting one ot the target anodes in each tube with respect to the coordinate axes o! the deilecting means, thereby to detect the instant when the beam passes through a predetermined phase of its scanning cycle, and means tor combining the effects oi the detections when they occur simultaneously in all of the tubes, thereby to pass a control pulse to said responsive device at the instant of reception of said single cycle of the wave train.

6. In combination, a source of periodic lmpulses, a set of cathode ray tubes each having a controlled electron gun together with means for rotatively defiecting its electron beam, a'selecting and a non-selecting segmental target \anode in each tube, circuit means including frequency dividers controlled by said impulses and energy components derived therefrom for so controlling the rotative yscanning velocities in the several tubes that a ten-to-one revolution ratio is maintained from tube to tube. circuits each interf coupling the selecting target of one tube and a control electrode in the gun of another tube in which the scanning velocity is greater, each said circuit constituting means for releasing electrons in the controlled gun only when the selecting target of the controlling tube is impacted by the electron beam therein, and a utilization device 

